Rhiann Trevelyan
“Whenever she walks into a room, everything just brightens. I don’t know if it’s her smile, the dimple in her cheek…” Cullen smiles absentmindedly. “Or her fireballs whenever someone tells her to keep that beast, excuse me, Druffy fenced in?” Dorian asks. “I... I guess that too.” Overview Physical Appearance Slightly taller than average, with shoulder-length brown hair, what draws most attention are Rhiann’s bright blue eyes and ever-present smile. Where the rest of her family has an athletic build, her being a mage combined with her love for cookies has made her a little curvier. Running around in the Hinterlands changed this and the sunlight also brought out the freckles on her nose and cheeks. Her clumsiness means she often has bruises and, after baking, burns on her hands. Personality Cheerful and charming, warm and welcoming. Rhiann loves being around people and people in general love her in return. She can switch from silly jokes to being an attentive friend at a moment’s notice. Maybe she’s a little naive, but hey, she just believes the best of people. Wouldn’t the world be a much better place if everyone did? Despite her cheerful nature, she struggles with the burden placed on her when she became Inquisitor. She will do anything to not let those who trust in her down. This means she’s not living for herself, her actions come from wanting to please someone else. Like the difference between her favourite branches of magic--fire and ice--her mood can change from happy to angry in the blink of an eye. Emotions often take over, which isn’t a good thing, especially for a mage. It’s something that scares her. 'Talents and Skills' First, Rhiann would like to share that she’s an amazing baker. Cookies, pastries, sweet breads, she loves to make (and eat) anything that is sweet. When she was a girl, her tutor taught her some painting skills. When she’s in the Circle, she keeps practising and ends up being quite good, though she’d never admit that; she’s rather self-conscious about showing her work. Together with Sera, she’s the best at pulling pranks. As for the “important” (really, her baking is far more important, it makes other happy) skills, she’s good at dealing with people. She has no idea how she does it, but understanding what motivates people and how they can be influenced just comes naturally to her. Biography History As the first child of Werner and Aleid Trevelyan, Rhiann was raised to be the heir of the Trevelyan family. She had a private tutor who taught her history, geography, mathematics and various languages. Most of it was boring. Rhiann would much rather go out with her two-year younger brother, Emrys, to play and make trouble. A few days before her 13th birthday, her magic manifested when an acquaintance of her father was visiting together with his son. Rhiann was showing the boy the stables when he did or said something that angered her and--WHAM--fire. To this day, she can’t recall what it was that angered her. She remembers the resulting chaos and her fear all the more vividly, though. Hiding was not an option and the templars arrived the next day. During her time at the Ostwick Circle, her parents visited her regularly and she maintained a good bond with them. Emrys was never allowed to visit as their parents thought it would only scare him. The same goes for their younger sibling, Miren, who is ten years younger than Rhiann. Soon after Rhiann’s arrival, a new apprentice came to the Circle: Nicholas. He was two years older than her and had been living in hiding for a while before templars found him. The other apprentices feared him, partly because he showed in class that he was a strong mage and partly because his rebellious nature would certainly cause trouble for anyone around him. Remembering her time outside the Circle all too well, but too afraid to rebel against the templars, Rhiann sympathised with and admired him. She befriended him and they later became lovers. Whenever he got punished for his behaviour, she was there to comfort him and heal him as much as she could. Eventually, the time came for Nicholas Harrowing. They had spoken about their Harrowing a lot and it mostly ended with Rhiann in tears. As a struggling-to-be-average mage, Rhiann was terrified that she would fail. She never believed Nick’s comforting words that she wouldn’t and when he told her he was afraid of failing, she gave him a disbelieving look. When the First Enchanter told her Nicholas had been made Tranquil, she was enraged and on the verge of conjuring a spike of ice to kill the man. He was unimpressed, and, knowing full well that his magic was far stronger than hers, she marched out of the room. She hasn’t spoken a word to him since. It’s her belief the templars made Nick tranquil without giving him a chance. He was brought to an unknown Circle. In an attempt to carry on what Nicholas would have wanted, Rhiann joined the Libertarians. Here, she used her natural talent for diplomacy to gain support and rally the mages. By the time the Conclave came, she was the second in rank for her Circle. The first didn’t dare go to the Conclave out of fear it would be a ploy to get the mages back to their Circle or worse, so Rhiann went instead. In-game Being called “Inquisitor” made her uncomfortable at first, but she also saw the possibilities it gave her. From this position, she could finally make a real difference for the mages, like Nicholas would have wanted. As time went on, she started to realise how her life revolved around Nick and decided things couldn’t continue like this. She was now Inquisitor, the fate of many depended on her, so she put her life in the service of the Inquisition. Essentially, nothing changed. The Inquisition had the mages as strong allies. With the support of the Inquisition, Celene ended up as ruler of Orlais. The Wardens joined the Inquisition, but after sending them on several missions, many of them got killed. Morrigan drank from the Well. Rhiann is yelling at me: “How dare you forget Druffy?” So, honourable mention to Druffy, Rhiann’s pet druffalo that she “saved” from a life on the farm and who now lives in Skyhold. Perhaps the most important change during Inquisition was that Rhiann went from being Andrastian in name only, to truly believing in Andraste and the Maker. She now even visits the Chantry regularly. This was mostly because she saw how Cullen drew strength from his faith and she had many discussions with him about it. Leliana greatly influenced her beliefs, making compassion and love central to Rhiann’s personal faith. Trespasser When the Exalted Council was called, Rhiann was convinced she would fight for the Inquisition to keep existing. Her entire life had formed around her role as Inquisitor, she would not let others take this from her! Part of her expected to die for the Inquisition and she had made peace with that when going through the Eluvian that final time. Then she found Solas and everything changed. Finding out what had been his role in the Breach and hearing his plans made her feel inconsequential, small. Why had she ever thought she could change anything? Feeling how all she had worked for the past years was slipping out of her control, she told Solas she would stop him, not even believing it herself. When she woke with her arm gone, she broke down. Exhausted and fed up with everything and anyone, she disbanded the Inquisition. Post-game After disbanding the Inquisition, there was a huge gap in Rhiann’s life. She spiralled into depression. Cullen took care of her while they stayed in a small house in the Fereldan countryside. Things do get better, Cullen’s care and the arrival of Druffy helped her a lot. Bit by bit, she learned who she was and what she wanted. Oh, and she found out she was pregnant. Well, actually Cullen was the first to realise this. She goes from bouncing with excitement to curling up with fear that her magic will somehow hurt the baby. Relationships Let’s start with Cullen. When she had no idea what was going on and an avalanche of information was released on her, he was the one who asked her how she felt about being called Herald of Andraste. Right then, she wanted to cry because of this simple gesture that showed he saw her as a person, not someone to be used, like the others seemed to think. Though awkward flirting and shy smiles made it clear they had feelings for each other, their relationship went, no, crawled forward in an almost agonizingly slow pace. Because of Cullen’s nightmares and lyrium withdrawal symptoms and Rhiann’s past experiences with Nicholas that haunted her, neither wanted to rush things. This resulted in a stable base for their relation. Rhiann admires and adores Josephine. Josie’s lessons in diplomacy were greatly appreciated by Rhiann and they spent a lot of time together. While Josie didn’t always agree with Rhiann’s casual approach to politics, she had to admit it was often effective. Leliana was distrusting and curt to Rhiann at first. Rhiann had no idea why, but as she learned more about Leliana’s life, she got a better understanding of her. Trust developed between them and discussions about the Maker and Andraste brought them closer. Despite this, their relation never went beyond being colleagues. Rhiann’s first reaction to Cassandra was to be intimidated. Surprisingly, after that initial impression, they got along quite well. Both have a strong desire to do what is right and a similar taste in, ehm, literature. Varric’s easygoing nature made Rhiann like him from the start. It broke her heart when she had to tell him how Hawke had been left behind in the Fade. He avoided her for a time, but an evening with a little too much wine and an honest heart-to-heart healed the broken trust. Solas confidence and calm manner helped Rhiann to not panic when she woke up with a flaring, green mark on her hand. She saw him as a teacher when it came to things related to magic and appreciated his thoughts on other matters as well even when she disagreed. The reveal that he was the Dread Wolf, an elven god, didn’t shock her. She wasn’t expecting it, obviously, but it fitted him and explained many things. What hurt her was how he had lied to her when she thought they had been friends and how she is now forced to work against him. Dorian’s sarcasm won Rhiann over the first time they met. He encouraged her to finally act on her feelings for Cullen. They stay in touch when he returns to Tevinter. With all the seriousness involved in being Inquisitor, Rhiann needed Sera’s company from time to time. Their pranks reminded Rhiann of her time with her little brother and were one of the bright spots when her responsibilities weighed her down. Vivienne is one of the few people Rhiann never came to understand. When Bastien was sick and then died, Rhiann saw Vivienne’s softer side for the first time. Understanding how much the loss of a loved one hurts, she was there for Vivienne and thought that perhaps, despite their different views on mages, they could become closer. Then Bastien’s family showed up in Skyhold and Vivienne tried to use her connection to Rhiann as a way to show her importance and gain respect. Vivienne’s ambition, even when grieving, scared Rhiann. Cole’s mindreading made Rhiann avoid him at first. She recognised his desire to help, however, and that made her want to help him in return. Thinking he deserved to be his own person, she made him more human. Distrust is very low on Rhiann’s list of characteristics, so even though Iron Bull told her he was a spy, she trusted him and his Chargers (who she saved). She liked his enthusiasm for dragons when all she wanted to do was run. Shaking and her smile more like a grimace that showed her lingering fear, a night drinking together was needed to calm her down afterwards. It was fun, though. In a way. Maybe. The first thing Rhiann asked Blackwall was whether he knew the Hero of Ferelden (Cullen sighs when reading this: it was also the first thing she asked him when she found out he had served at the same Circle as Neria). Her obsession with the Hero of Ferelden carried over to the Grey Wardens in general, so she never questioned him, even when her instinct told her he was hiding something. It must be secret Warden-knowledge. His betrayal (as she sees it) hit her hard. It wasn’t necessarily his actions, but more his lies: he lied about being an honourable Warden! She forgives him eventually, but stays uncomfortable in his presence, partly because of the way he treats her with all this reverence. She is glad he found a goal in his life by Trespasser. Miscellaneous During Inquisition, she got a scar through her eyebrow. Though she pretends there is some heroic story behind it, it really is the result of a thorny bush sweeping in her face during her date with Cullen to the lake of his childhood. Her admiration of the Hero of Ferelden, Neria Surana, borders on hero worship. This started because the stories of how Neria and Alistair had defeated the Archdemon reached the Ostwick Circle shortly after Nicholas had been made Tranquil and grieving Rhiann took strength from the thought that somewhere out there was a mage, just like her, who was walking freely, living her own life and accomplishing all those seemingly impossible feats. 'Links' Reddit Headcanon Threads: Reddit Writing prompt Threads: Sugar on the tongue, liquor on the lips, heart shattered into pieces, stolen with a kiss. Codex Entry: Your OC has found a new pet “Do not waver, do not hesitate, do not second guess- Take charge and strike!” Everyone loves the Hissing Wastes (or not) The Thedas Fashion Show Childlike wonder, excited laughter, the feeling of peace Two heroes meet (ft. Neria Surana) Non-Reddit links (AO3, DeviantArt, Tumblr): Gallery paranormal.png|Sample Photo Category:Inquisitor Category:Mage Category:Trevelyan Category:Cullen Romance